


The Pauper and the Prince

by grey_sw (grey)



Category: Tron - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-11
Updated: 2013-01-11
Packaged: 2017-11-25 02:11:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/634007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grey/pseuds/grey_sw
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rinzler wins.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Pauper and the Prince

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wtb](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wtb/gifts).



> Inspired by this stunning piece of fanart by winzler:  
> [](http://24.media.tumblr.com/20eb94cdbbba23d3ab60edc42baafecf/tumblr_mge8ydAQk21qg8uuyo1_1280.png)

Rinzler swept into the Throne Room, dismissing the Sentries with a glare. He grunted as he dropped into Clu's royal seat, relishing the feel of the air on his face. It was good to be without his helmet, if only for a while; it made the sight of the city before him all the brighter, all the more beautiful. He leaned back, drew his baton and his Disc, laid both against the chair's high armrests, and stared out over Tron City as if he owned it... which, in a manner of speaking, he did.

A moment later the door slid open, though Rinzler did not turn to look. A hand dropped down upon his shoulder, heavy and possessive. A sweet taste of power came along with it, trickling down into his circuits. Another reward, for finishing the Game.

Of all the Games they played, hide-and-seek was his favorite. Clu would fold his vestments, let his connection to the system fade, and enter the city, armed only with his Disc. He'd disappear for a quarter-cycle or more, moving deep into the secret places of the system. Then Rinzler would follow, hunting him down like a renegade.

Rinzler glanced at the hand that dared touch him, and let a sly smile touch his lips. This round had been easy, though he wasn't about to let Clu know it; he would never shame his Leader so. He'd brought Clu to bay in the remains of a shattered warehouse, little more than three walls and a bare floor which rattled with the remains of the fourth. He'd trapped him in the far corner with an audacious leap, cutting off both angles of retreat with his Discs. Next he'd slaughtered the rag-tag bunch of blue-lit programs Clu had had with him -- he never understood why Clu didn't bring the Guard, at least _they_ might be a moment's challenge -- and then he'd closed in on Clu himself, and the real game had begun.

He let his Disc revolve beneath his fingers as he savored the memory, marring the black matte glass of the throne. The hand on his shoulder tightened, but stopped short of harm. Perhaps Clu, too, was remembering how easily he'd been brought down. Clu had fought defensively, stepping back again and again, all code-manipulation and subtle confusion rather than the stomping kicks and grapples he preferred when they were playing together in the Arena. Rinzler had turned and dodged through a storm of malicious code until the very ground turned against him, heaving upward to split beneath his feet. Then one last spinning vault had carried him over and down, and a quick kick had brought Clu down in a heap of crumpled white robes.

He'd stopped the Game, then, spitting pixels through his broken grin, and Rinzler had returned to the Throne Ship in triumph. He knew that Clu wasn't the one he was truly training to hunt -- not quite, at least -- but that didn't matter to him. His were the laurels, his the honor; only victory mattered.

Clu gave his shoulder one last pat and then moved around the chair, sinking down to crouch before him. He laid one hand on each of Rinzler's wide-spread knees and fed him another pulse of energy, rich with affection and promise. The wide grin that came along with it was maddeningly familiar, but Rinzler didn't feel like plumbing the depths of his unreliable memory tonight.

He merely purred, favoring Clu with a princely nod as he accepted his reward.


End file.
